The present invention relates to a sewing device, in particular but not exclusively, a surgical sewing device.
When suturing a cut or wound it is normal practice for a surgeon to use a needle to form separate discrete stitches. This is a time consuming operation and is also difficult to perform for example in keyhole surgery.
An aim of the present invention is to provide a sewing device which can be operated by a surgeon to suture cuts in tissue by producing stitches mechanically. Another aim of the invention is to provide such a device which is capable of being operated externally of a patient in order to suture cuts in tissue located internally of the patient via a small incision.
According to one aspect of the present invention there is provided a sewing device comprising an elongate rigid support body having sewing means mounted at one end adapted to create a continuous chain stitch and drive means located at the opposite end operable for driving the sewing means. Preferably the drive means is arranged to drive the sewing means through a single sewing cycle only in order to produce a single stitch.
According to another aspect of the invention there is provided a method of suturing a cut or wound comprising mechanically sewing tissue adjacent the cut or wound to form a suture comprising a continuous chain stitch. Preferably the method comprises repeatedly positioning the sewing means at a manually selected position along the cut or wound to be sutured and operating the drive means to form a stitch at said selected position.